Game Development Toolkit

Modern, modular CMake workspace designed to feel like a .sln solution in CLion/Rider: drop a lib_* folder in the root and everything wires up automatically — the root CMakeLists.txt auto-discovers lib_* directories, registers their tests with shared labels, and folds them into the aggregate build targets.

Each library is a static C++ core with an optional thin C shim (bindings/) so it can be consumed from any engine or language that can speak C. Pure-C example consumers are built as part of the default target, so the C API can never silently rot.

What's inside

• lib_core — foundational utilities: Result<T> error handling, Optional<T>/NotNull<T> null safety, basic math types
• lib_inventory — engine-agnostic inventory system with a C API (inventory_c shared library) plus two pure-C example consumers
• test_harness — cross-library integration and performance tests
• cmake/ — shared helpers (GDTCommon.cmake) and a library scaffolder (AddNewLibrary.cmake)

Build prerequisites

• Windows: Visual Studio 2022 Build Tools (MSVC), or MSYS2 MinGW64 (GCC) + Ninja
• macOS: Xcode command line tools + Ninja
• Linux: GCC or Clang + Ninja

Configure & build (presets)

Ninja (Linux / macOS / any machine with a default compiler on PATH):

• Configure: cmake --preset ninja-debug (or ninja-release)
• Build all libs: cmake --build --preset build-debug
• Build tests: cmake --build --preset build-tests-debug
• Run tests: ctest --preset test-all-debug

Visual Studio 2022 (Windows):

• Configure: cmake --preset vs2022-debug
• Build: cmake --build --preset build-vs2022-debug
• Test: ctest --preset test-all-vs2022-debug

MSYS2 MinGW64 (Windows):

• Configure: cmake --preset msys2-mingw64-debug
• Build: cmake --build --preset build-msys2-mingw64-debug
• Test: ctest --preset test-all-msys2-mingw64-debug

Options:

• C++ standard: pass -DGDT_CXX_STANDARD=23 or 20 at configure time (presets default to 23)
• Run tests by label: ctest --preset test-all-debug -L unit (labels: unit, property, performance, integration, stress, lib:<name>)

IDE targets

• Aggregate: build_all, build_tests, run_all
• Runners: run_tests, run_unit_tests, run_property_tests, run_performance_tests, performance_monitor
• Per-library: core, inventory, inventory_c, their *_tests, and the C API examples example_minimal_binding / example_engine_consumer
• Integration: test_harness

CLion: open the folder, pick the ninja-debug preset (or a Debug/Ninja profile); all targets above are discoverable.

Add a new library

Scaffold lib_foo with a single script call:

cmake -DNEW_LIBRARY_NAME=foo -P cmake/AddNewLibrary.cmake

This creates lib_foo/include/foo, lib_foo/src, lib_foo/test, and a CMakeLists that links against core and registers its test. Add -DWITH_C_API=ON to also generate a bindings/ C shim. Re-run the configure step and the root build picks it up — no manual wiring.

(The same helper is callable from CMake code: include(cmake/AddNewLibrary.cmake) then gdt_add_library(foo WITH_C_API).)

Cleanup

Windows: powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File scripts/clean_builds.ps1 Elsewhere: delete the build/ directory.